“This is truly an honor for me,” said Feeney a native of New Martinsville, West Virginia. “I was ecstatic when I was inducted into Tau Beta Pi in 2012, because I have always viewed induction into the society as a pinnacle achievement for an engineering student.”

Tau Beta Pi is the national engineering honor society that represents every field of engineering. To be a member, students must be in the top eighth of their class as a junior or top fifth in their class as a senior and be considered for their overall character. The scholars are deemed to be most deserving among their fellow academically excelling members.

“It is an honor to have one of our members win one of these prestigious scholarships,” said Melissa Morris, teaching assistant professor of freshman engineering and advisor of the West Virginia Alpha Chapter of Tau Beta Pi at WVU. “Joseph had to compete against the top echelon of engineering students for this and we are proud that he was named a Tau Beta Pi scholar.”

Feeney plans to pursue a master’s degree in either mechanical or aerospace engineering with the long-term goal to earn a doctorate in one of those fields.

“This scholarship has definitely helped to get my name out there. A few different schools have already contacted me and sent some information to me about their graduate programs,” Feeney said.

Feeney is a member of the WVU EcoCAR 3 team, the National Mortar Board Honor Society and “The Pride of West Virginia” Mountaineer Marching Band. With all this on his plate, Feeney has achieved a 4.0 GPA throughout his studies at WVU.

“Without question, WVU has provided me with the resources and support necessary to build a strong academic and community-oriented background,” he said. “The University has done a phenomenal job at creating an environment that emphasizes honest, hard work and inquisitiveness in its academics as well as support for its numerous professional student organizations.”